Jeff & Konnor's Blog

The Day the Earth Stood Still (2008) is mildly entertaining but somewhat disappointing. The story line didn't have much to it, and there was a lot of character behavior that didn't make sense -- most notably Klaatu's decision to save the Earth, which seemingly came out of nowhere. We thought that Keanu Reeves was fine as Klaatu, but the rest of the acting ranged from forgettable to annoying (Jaden Smith as whining boy #1). The special effects were good but not remarkable.

Instead, we recommend the original The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951). It has a tight story line, engaging plot, and good character development -- proving that you can make good science fiction without relying on special effects. The interior of Klaatu's spaceship was surprisingly well designed considering the time period, and we both noticed a lot of interesting uses of light throughout the film.

The comparison between the two films says something about the quality of movies in general these days -- in particular, the trend of replacing actual stories with special effects. We like the tall guy in the clunky 1951 Gort costume just fine. Making Gort into a thirty-foot CGI effect that can disassemble itself into matter-eating nano-bugs isn't an excuse for letting the story fall apart.

Interesting trivia: Censors in 1951 didn't like the fact that Gort was able to revive Klaatu from death. The writers were forced to change the plot to make the resurrection temporary, with Klaatu explaining that he couldn't be brought back to life permanently because, "That power is reserved for the Almighty Spirit."